Signal device for automobiles



W. P. CARROLL.

SIGNAL DEVICE FOR AUTOMOBILES. APPLICATION FILED MAR; 17, 1921.

1,398,677, Patented Nov. 29, 1921.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM P. GARROLLQOF PORTLAND, MAIIENE.

I SIGNAL DEVICE FOR AUTOMOBILES.-

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 29,1921.

Application filed March 17, 1921. Serial No. 453,143.

T all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WILLIAM P. CARROLL,

; a citizen of the United States, residing at Portland, in the county of Cumberland and State of Maine, have inventedcertainnew and useful Improvements in Signal Devices for Automobiles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to slgnal devices for automobiles. It relates-particularly to signal devices for inclosed automobiles which' will be visible fromthe rear of the machine to indicate the direction in which it is to turn or if it is to stop or slow down.

My invention consists essentially of a strip of flexible material as cloth wound on a' spring curtain roller secured on the inside of the car below or above the rear Wll'ldOW and normally out of sight from the rear of the car. The strip of material has painted or otherwise formed 'on it signal words preferably the words Right, Left and Stop, indicating that the car intends to turn to the right orleft or to slow up and stop and thatany car. approaching from the rear must govern itself accordingly.

Means are provided for drawing the strip out from the roller so that the words will be visible through the rear window. The

means I prefer to use for .this purpose is a flexible cord or strip wound on a corresponding spring roller located at the front portion of the car and connected with the signal strip at the rear so that the two spring rollers will nearly balance each other.

A connecting cord extends fromone roller to the other over suitable guides and a 7 stop or check is provided somewhere in the line of said cord so that the signal may be raised or lowered at any point in the car H strip. 14. Connecting the strip 13 with the by pulling the cord one way or the other. I have illustrated my invention by the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1' is an outline in side elevation of the body of a closedcar in one form of my device.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the curtain roller with flexible strip or curtain with the signal words thereon in an unrolled or extended position as when drawn out to display the words.

Fig. 3 is a section Fig. 2, I

-Fig. 4C is a view of the rear window as it will appear with the signal set and,

Fig. 5 is a section on the line 2-2 of F g- .7 a

on the line '1--1 of Fig. 6 is an alternate form of the forward connection,

- Fig. 7 is a view of thesame looking from beneath and,

' Fig. 8 is an alternate form of where the roller is used above thetrear window.-

vIn the drawing like reference figures indicate like parts. i

Referring to the drawing, 3 represents the automobile top, 4 the rear window. Just below the window at on the inside of the car I secure a spring roller 5 such as is used for curtains but the fixture'has no automatic stop such as used on ordinary windows. On the roller is wound a strip of flexible material 6 which may be suitable cloth and on this strip are painted or other-- wise" marked the series of signal words Left, Stop, and Right.

,The end of. the strip is finished by a metal terminal portion 7 made of sheet metal with the upper end turned over to form a hook 8. Onone side is formed a socket 9 for fastening the end of thecord 10 by which the curtain is drawn out. The end of the flexible strip is united tothe metal metal terminal to form a hook, catching the end of the strip or curtain in the hook and "flattening out the metal to" hold the two end to the other, this rod being used: to

catch and retain the terminal when the our- ,7 terminal by turning the lower endof the r tain is housed in the casing as shown in i Fig. 3. The tension on the roller 5 is counteracted by a second spring roller 13 se-- cured to the forward upper portion of the car and having wound thereon a flexible strip 6 is a flexible cord, wire or the like 10.

The tension on the roller is' somewhat greater than that on the roller 13 so that when the upwardpull on the strip 6 is re-f leased, thestrip 6 willbepulled back into in the line of the cord sufliciently strong to hold the'cord in place against the pull of the spring in roller 5. V For this purpose I secure a p a e l ne ith and adjacent tov he.

guide pulley 16. The plate contains a hole 18 through which the cord passes and this hole is considerably below or out of line with the general direction of the cord so that the latter will niake a decided bend or change of direction as it passes through the hole 18 and as it passes up through the pulley 16.

The sharp turn thus given to the cord creates friction enough to hold it in place and to hold the strip in position wherever it may be. V

For the purpose of properly displaying the signal words from the rear of the automobile, I partially cover the surface of the window with some opaque substance as paint or black paper forming a panel 20 slightly larger than the signal word so that attention will be called distinctly to the word by one looking from the rear.

On the back side of the strip 6 and directly opposite the signal words I form initial letters or other signs (not shown) so that a person in the car can know the exact position of the signal. words. Preferably I use the lettersL, S and R opposite the words Left, Stop and Right to locate their position by.

In Figs. 6 and 7 I have shown the forward roller and the narrow strip 13 wound inside of the same having indicating letters L, S and B. This strip is so connected with cord 10 that when the main strip or curtain shows the word Left the letter L will be just at the edge of the projection 13* which extends out from the casing 13. These letters are on the under side of the strip 14: where they can be seen from the interior of the car and made to stop at the proper place by pulling on the cord 10.

In Fig. 8 I have shown the roller 5 on the upper side of the window where a car has not the necessary room below the window. In this case, the strip 6 is drawn down, the cord 10 passes through a guide pulley 22 below the window and thence to the top of the car through other guide pulleys as 21.

In using the device when the car is to turn or to stop, the cord 10 is simply pulled along to a position which will cause the appropriate word to be shown through the panel 20.

1. A signal device for automobiles, consisting of a spring roller secured to the rear of the car adjacent to the window, a strip of flexiblematerial wound thereon having signal words visible from the rear of the car, a spring roller in the forward portion of the car having a strip of flexible material wound thereon, the said strips of flexible material being united by a cord or the like and guides for guiding said cord.

9.. A signal device for inclosed automobiles, consisting of a spring roller secured adjacent to the rear window, a stripof flexible material wound thereon and having thereon signal words visible from the rear of the car, a transparent panel formed on said window slightly larger than the standard size of said words and means for raising and lowering said strip so that one or another of said words will be visible through said panel.

3. In a signal device for inclosed automobiles, the combination of a spring curtain roller secured adjacent to the rear window, a strip of flexible material wound thereon, a spring roller secured to the forward portion of the machine, a strip of flexible material wound thereon, a cord connecting the two strips of flexible material, a friction device in the line of said cord for holdingsaid cord from longitudinal motion and the signal strip in any desired position.

4. A signal device for automobiles, consisting of a spring roller secured to the rear of the car adjacent to the rear window, a strip of flexible material wound thereon and having thereon signal words, a spring roller secured to the forward portion of the car, a strip of flexible material wound thereon, a flexible cord or the like uniting said strips, guide pulleys for said cord, a plate adjacent to one of said pulleys havinga hole for the passage of said cord, said hole being at one side of the normal line of the cord and adapted to pinch and hold the cord when the latter is pulled.

5. In signal device for closed automobiles, the combination of a spring. curtain roller, a casing therefor, secured adjacent to the rear window, a cross rod secured to'the casing, a flexible strip wound on said roller having thereon signal words, a metal bind ing strip on the end of said flexible strip having a hook adapted to hook over said rod to hold the curtain permanently in place.

WILLIAM R CARROLL. 

